Queen Elizabeth II marks 60 years on the throne

Diamond Jubilee: Queen Elizabeth II marks 60 years on the throne

KING’S LYNN, United Kingdom — Queen Elizabeth II renewed her vow to serve on Monday as she made a low-key start to five months of diamond jubilee celebrations marking her 60 years on the throne.

Six decades after the death of her father King George VI on February 6, 1952 made the young princess a queen overnight, the monarch said in a message to her subjects she wanted to, “Dedicate myself anew to your service.”

The 85-year-old also thanked the nation for “the wonderful support and encouragement that you have given to me and Prince Philip over these years,” a reference to her husband of 64 years, who recently underwent heart surgery.

The queen is now the second longest-serving monarch in British history after Queen Victoria, who reigned from 1837 to 1901.

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In contrast to the lavish celebrations planned for the official jubilee in June, Monday’s anniversary was business as usual for the queen as a mark of respect for her beloved “Papa.”

About 100 well-wishers braved snow-covered streets to greet the queen as she visited the town hall in King’s Lynn in eastern England.

People waved homemade signs saying “we love you ma’am” and urging her “long to reign over us”.

The queen, who wore a turquoise hat with feathers and an ivory-coloured coat with turquoise buttons, arrived in a black Range Rover to polite applause, before going inside the building with local officials.

“I think we are lucky to have her, I really do. She’s rock solid,” said Jean Garbutt, 77, who came from Yorkshire in northern England especially to see the monarch.

Colin Edwards, 71, from North Wales, said he had composed a poem for the queen which he hoped to give her, adding: “She is absolutely amazing, she is warm, gracious and dedicated to her job. She is an inspiration.”

The queen’s involvement in jubilee events in the coming months will be restricted to Britain, but other members of the royal family will criss-cross the Commonwealth in her place, from Canada to tiny Tuvalu in the Pacific.

Prime Minister David Cameron said the queen had guided the country “with experience, dignity and quiet authority” – and he dismissed suggestions she was “simply a glittering ornament.”

“That misunderstands our constitution and it underestimates our queen. Always dedicated, always resolute and always respected, she is a source of wisdom and continuity,” he said.

“All my life, and for the lives of most people in this country, she has always been there for us.”

Prime Minister Julia Gillard of Australia, where the queen was greeted by cheering crowds last year, was the first overseas leader to congratulate her, saying her jubilee was a “truly remarkable event.”

The celebrations in Britain will culminate in a four-day public holiday on June 2-5, the highlight of which will be a flotilla of 1,000 boats sailing up the River Thames on June 3.

On the fateful day in 1952, the 25-year-old Elizabeth was on a visit to Kenya when she received the news from her husband that her father had passed away in his sleep.

As she returned to Britain, she was greeted at the airport by prime minister Winston Churchill and the enormity of the challenge would have dawned on her.

Her coronation, a solemn affair, did not take place for more than a year, on June 2, 1953.

The royal family has been through tumultuous times since then. Three of the queen’s four children have divorced and every personal crisis has been dissected by world media.

The most extreme case was the 1997 death of Princess Diana, ex-wife of the queen’s eldest son Prince Charles, a rare moment of mass unpopularity for the monarch who was criticized for not showing enough emotion amid a national outpouring of grief.

During her reign, the royal family has also repeatedly come under fire over its expensive lifestyle and the queen has had to give up some of her privileges, such as her beloved yacht Britannia, which was decommissioned in 1997.

But over time, the monarch’s restrained behaviour and devotion to duty have endeared her to most Britons. She also benefited from the goodwill generated by the glamorous wedding of her grandson Prince William and Kate Middleton last year.

In the message to her subjects, the queen said she and Philip had been “deeply moved” at all the kind messages marking her 60 years on the throne.

She reflected on the importance of family and friendship, and urged her subjects “to look forward to the future with a clear head and a warm heart.”

The royal household launched a festive new website, thediamondjubilee.org, allowing users to send the queen a message, listing 60 interesting or amusing facts about her, and featuring a photo timeline of world events during her reign.

During Elizabeth’s reign there have been 12 British prime ministers, 12 U.S. presidents and six popes.

Among the 60 facts listed on the website were details about the queen’s favourite dogs: she has owned 30 corgis during her reign, and has three at present, Monty, Willow and Holly.

The queen has answered approximately 3.5 million letters, sent about 45,000 Christmas cards and given out some 90,000 Christmas puddings to staff over the years.

The timeline includes world events ranging from the first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953 to the Arab Spring protests in 2011, as well as personal milestones such as the birth of Savannah, her first great-grandchild, in 2010.

It even includes a picture of legendary punk band the Sex Pistols signing a record deal in front of Buckingham Palace — although it stops short of mentioning their 1977 hit song “God Save the Queen”, which the BBC banned at the time over lyrics deemed too disrespectful towards the monarch.

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